


Aftermath

by Wanderlust14



Category: GreedFall (Video Game)
Genre: Grief, M/M, Spoilers, canon character death, end of game
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-22
Updated: 2019-09-22
Packaged: 2020-10-25 17:44:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,819
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20728238
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wanderlust14/pseuds/Wanderlust14
Summary: What happens after the confrontation with Constantin





	Aftermath

Suddenly, the beasts shook and collapsed. Vasco stared at them and then looked around. All the monsters had stopped fighting and he could see the Natives and other Nauts were exhausted and confused. Siora crouched down and examined one of the beasts for a few minutes. “He has done it.” She said excitedly. 

Vasco felt a knot loosen his chest. His Tempest kiss still burned his lips and now he knew, De Sardet had won. “Are you sure?”

Siora nodded, “The poison is already leaving their bodies. En on mil frichtimen is in control again.” 

A cheer went up and Derdre actually smiled. “Good, are they still alive?”

Siora nodded, “Some are. We will probably need to kill the wounded ones, but I don't know about the others.”

Derdre crouched down, "I would prefer to not kill them all. It was not their fault a renaigse corrupted them. I will send a message to Dunncas." 

They heard footsteps coming up the mountain and saw Kurt and Aphra running towards them. “Siora! Vasco!” Aphra called out, “How are things here? The animals have stopped attacking our camp.”

“And they won’t again. Constantin has been defeated.”

Vasco saw the conflicting emotions in Kurt’s face. He knew Kurt had cared for Constantin and, even though the man never wavered from the fact it had to be done, it could not have been easy supporting Constantin's end. “Where's Greenblood?” 

“He went ahead with Petrus.”

“You didn’t go with him?” Kurt asked sharply.

“No, we were needed here.”

Kurt looked crossed, but he could not raise a fuss since he also left De Sardet. “We need to keep moving then. We need to find him.”

Siora turned to Derdre, “I will go with them to the Heart.”

Derdre frowned, but nodded, “Make sure they respect that holy place. It has already been desecrated enough and be careful, you do not know what you will find there.”

“We will be back soon."

The four of them took off up the trail. There was a trio of dead beast a short distance from their camp and Aphra glanced at them and smiled. “I believe De Sardet killed those beasts. He has quite the signature.”

They continued to move forward and soon started to find fallen Theleme soldiers. Everything was eerily quiet, as if the world was holding its breath for the next thing to go wrong. It was troubling to Vasco and he just wanted to see his Tempest again, to be sure that he was alive.

They reached the Theleme camp and Vasco spotted Petrus sitting next to a young Theleme soldier, healing her wounds. Once he finished, he looked up at them with a smile. “I am glad to see you are well. How are things further down?”

“Losses were heavy, but not as bad as they could have been.” Kurt said, “I don’t suppose Greenblood is here with you?”

“No, he went ahead alone. Since the animals have stopped attacking, does that mean?”

Siora nodded, “Constantin has been stopped.”

“And yet De Sardet has not returned here.” Petrus said with a frown. He turned, “Sister, I will accompany them into the Sanctuary, heal as many as you can and start heading down. I am sure our allies will need help as well.

“Of course, Father.”

They reached the Heart of the Sanctuary and Vasco’s own heart nearly stopped at the sight before them. De Sardet was slumped on the ground, looking as still as the grave. “De Sardet!”

They ran to the man’s side and he breathed a sigh of relief when he saw De Sardet’s chest slowly moving. “He was injured in battle.” Aphra said as Vasco helped her removed his armor and examined him, “But he has no serious head injuries and his breathing sounds stable.”

“I believe this is a healing sleep.” Siora replied. "It does not feel unnatural."

“Praise the Enlightened one.” Petrus said softly.

Kurt let out a sigh and took a moment, before releasing De Sardet's hand, sitting back on his heels. Vasco watched as he got up and walked over to Constantin’s body. Even though Vasco knew this needed to be done, it hurt to see what happened to Constantin; the change from the merry young man running onto his ship eager for adventure to the monster slayed next to them. Kurt reached down and pulled the knife from his chest.

“That is a ceremonial knife…De Sardet didn’t have anything like it.” Siora said softly.

Kurt looked at the knife and took a breath. “Doesn’t really matter.” He said as he tucked the knife away. Then he leaned down and closed Constantin’s eyes, “I am sorry, Pup, you deserved better than this.” 

Then, Kurt grabbed Constantin’s body, dragged him to the ledge, and pushed him over.

“Why did you do that?” Siora asked.

“If De Sardet ever wishes to return to the Continent,” Petrus said softly, “he cannot have a hand in his cousin’s death. His uncle is still the Prince of the Congregation.”

“He didn’t.” Aphra said after a moment, “It was hard to see, because animals were feasting on him, but it looked like the stolen island magic overwhelmed him.”

“Pure hubris, he took more than he could handle and the blast injured De Sardet who was trying to talk some sense into him.” Petrus continued. 

“And the knife?” Vasco asked.

“Will be gone before morning.” Kurt replied.

“It was hubris that killed him.” A familiar voice spoke and they all jumped.

“En on-” Siora started to say, but stopped when the huge guardian jumped down from one of its branches. Vasco remembered the very same one chasing them from the Sanctuary the first time they visited.

“You wish to take my stolen child from me again, but are you worthy?” En on mil frichtimen said. Vasco watched as the beast slowly approached. He wanted to grab his gun, but he remembered the trials with De Sardet, the easy answer was not always the right answer. 

“Not take, we will not force him to go anywhere.” Vasco said, “But he should have the right to choose.”

The beast sniffed De Sardet and then approached him. It was terrifying, staring into the white eyes, but he kept his hands still and looked back. Suddenly the beast leaned in and sniffed, almost knocking him over. “You are sincere, child of the sea.”

“Yes,” He continued to look into the beast’s eyes and knew he had to speak the truth. “I love him. We all do, in different ways.”

“Indeed” The beast moved among them, sniffing them, judging them, before finally returning to its branch. “Go, but allow my child to rest. He needs to heal.”

They grabbed De Sardet and quickly left. Vasco almost regretted not bringing a litter with them as Kurt and he carried the limp De Sardet, but the feeling of him breathing in Vasco's arms was worth it.

***

Vasco felt something gently nudging his hand and he woke with a start. They were outside the Fiery Soul, at the camp the alliance had established so the soldiers could rest and prepare for the journey home. De Sardet had not stirred during their trip down the mountain, but their best doctors and healers were not too concerned yet, so Vasco tried not to worry as well. He looked up from the small cot he had set up in De Sardet's tent and found His Temptest looking back at him, their hands still intertwined, “What happened?” He whispered. 

Vasco wanted to weep with relief at the sight and kissed his beloved's hand. “We are at a camp with the alliance. You did it. The beasts were stopped and things are returning to normal.” 

De Sardet closed his eyes and nodded, his voice pained as he said, “Good, that is good.”

Vasco stroked his face, seeing his exhaustion and grief. “How are you, my Tempest? You have been sleeping for almost 12 hours.”

“Tired, bruised, sore.”

“What happened?”

“I fought against the Guardian of the Sanctuary. I won, but it gave me a good thrashing.” Suddenly, De Sardet tugged lightly on his hand. “Can you come here?”

Vasco did not hesitate to get into bed with him and pull him into a tight embrace. He knew he should be careful with De Sardet’s injuries, but the man was clinging to him just as tightly and he could tell his Tempest needed an anchor in the storm.

“Thank you.” De Sardet whispered.

“There is no place I’d rather be.”

De Sardet shook his head, “He offered me Godhood, said that this was a gift to me, so we could be together forever. All I had to do was bind myself to him and we would conquer death, punish those who used and abused us, and be…gods of the new world. We would bring a new, better order.”

The words were hard and terrifying and Vasco held him closer, “I’m sorry.”

De Sardet was quiet for a moment, “It was tempting. I was tempted, but…”

“But?”

“I needed to see you again.” De Sardet let out a small sob. “I chose you. I chose you and Kurt and Siora and Petrus and Aphra. His plan would have killed you and everyone else and so I killed him.”

Vasco kissed De Sardet’s head as he hid his tears in Vasco's shirt. “I am sorry, my Tempest, I am so sorry.”

De Sardet did the right thing, there was no doubt about that, but the right thing had still been an incredibly painful thing. Vasco wished he could do something to take the pain away and ease his burden. He held his Tempest closer and rubbed his back. After a while, he felt the tears slow, and thought his words might get through the grief. “I know it won’t make it any easier now, but you did the right thing. The Constantin you knew and loved was gone and I think the man you grew up with would have been happy you didn’t allow him to destroy the world. You made the right decision. You didn’t just choose me, but all of Teer Fradee and the Continent.”

“I don’t think my Uncle and Aunt will agree.”

“About that…” Vasco said with a sigh and De Sardet looked up at him, “If anyone asks, you didn’t kill him. You were trying to stop him, but in his madness, he lost control of the stolen magic and killed himself. That is the message that has been sent to San Matheus, Hikmit, and New Serene and will be sent to Serene.”

“But the body-”

“Is gone, as is the knife.”

“Who knows the truth?”

“Just the core group, Siora, Aphra, Kurt, Petrus, and myself.”

“Does anyone actually believe that?”

“I don’t know. I think people knew he needed to be stopped and they like you. So, they have been accepting it.”

De Sardet nodded and sighed, “Poor Constantin.”

He stroked His Tempest's hair, “I am sorry. I remember what he used to be like, he didn’t deserve this fate.”

“No, he didn’t.”

***

He woke the next morning to a firm hand shaking his shoulder. He glared up at Kurt, who was smirking back at him. “What do you want?”

“Should I take this to mean Greenblood woke up last night?”

“Yes.”

“Good, well get up, the doctors want to check on him.” 

Vasco sighed, but untangled himself from De Sardet with a yawn. It had taken De Sardet a while to fall back asleep last night and even longer for Vasco. It was just a whirlwind of emotions since as much as he was thrilled his Tempest lived and had chosen him, it still hurt seeing how upset De Sardet was. He knew grief took time, but he never realized how hard it was to watch someone else grief. 

“Up and at ‘em, Greenblood, no being lazy.” He heard Kurt saying as he quickly got dressed. 

De Sardet groaned, “Really Kurt?”

“Yes, really, before the doctors come in here-”

“I told him.” Vasco said quietly.

“Good, how are you feeling, Greenblood?”

“Sore and exhausted. How are you?” De Sardet asked quietly.

“Fine.” Kurt said, “It will take more than a few possessed beasts to take me down.”

“Good, I don’t know what I would do without my old Master of Arms.” 

Kurt squeezed his shoulder and swallowed. “You won’t find out. I’ll tell the doctors you are awake and decent.” He said, all but fleeing the tent.

De Sardet struggled to sit up and Vasco hurried over to help him, “Should you be getting up?”

“My back is killing me.” He reached up and pulled Vasco down into a chaste, but needed kiss. “Besides, easier to do that.”

Vasco smiled and kissed him again, keeping it gentle, “Much better morning greeting than the one I got before.”

He pulled away when he heard the doctors’ approach and gave De Sardet some privacy as they examined him.

***

Vasco watched his Tempest sitting by the window. They arrived in New Serene a few days ago and the man had been quiet since their arrival. He understood, the grief was wearing heavily on him. The members of the Congregation did not know how to react and he had been, for the most part, left alone. De Courcillion had been deeply relieved to see his student, but it was clear the loss of Constantin hurt him as well. “I think, he was going to force me.”

“What?”

“Constantin, I have been thinking about our last meeting.” De Sardet looked back at him, “He told the Guardian to grab me, when I had only said his name. It was only after the Guardian got more aggressive that he stopped it, because…he didn’t want that. I think if the Guardian had succeeded, he would have bound me to him, without my consent.”

Vasco felt a spike of fear and hatred towards Constantin shudder through him and he wrapped his arms around his Tempest's shoulders, “You told me that he wasn’t himself at the end, this proves it.”

“Yes, it couldn't have been him. Constantin was many things, but he never did that. I know he paid for whores, but he was not the type to force himself on the unwilling. I don’t think he was.” 

“I can’t say for certain, but he never had wandering fingers with my crew and that was months of celibacy. If he could handle himself there, I doubt he would have been different when he could find many pretty and willing partners.”

“I hope so.” Something seemed different about De Sardet, he seemed less weighed down.

Vasco kissed the top of his head. “I know you don’t fully accept it yet, but you did the right thing.”

“I don’t, but it really wasn’t him. My cousin would never have hurt me, would never have forced me. He never had in the past. It is why I often had to rescue him from his messes, because he had not forced me to join him to begin with.” He snorted, “Apparently, both Lady Morange and Sir de Courcillion had been alarmed by changes in his behavior, but had not seen fit to discuss their concerns directly with me.”

“You would be amazed at how people would be willing to ignore their concerns about someone until it is too late. There was an incident a few years back with one of our Captain who was losing his facilities. People knew something wasn’t right about him, but no one said anything until he caused a major fire on his ship. If it wasn’t for the alert first mate, the entire crew would have been lost, the ship was ruined though.” 

“What happened afterwards?”

“He was tried and found to be incompetent. He was removed from his ship and lived on one of our islands until he died. It was a sad end for a Captain who had been regarded as a great one for most of his career. People liked Constantin, they were happy he survived and they didn’t want to think there was something wrong with him, so they ignored their concerns.”

De Sardet closed his eyes and nodded, “I am being unfair. I had my concerns as well and did not say anything to either of them. Could you tell me again that I did the right thing?”

Vasco smiled and whispered in his ear, “I truly believe you did the right thing. It was hard and not fair that the burden was on you, but it shows the strength of your character that you did it anyway.”

De Sardet reached up and squeezed his hand, “Thank you.”

Vasco squeezed back and kissed his cheek. He knew it would be awhile before De Sardet was like his old self, but he also felt relieved knowing they were moving in the right direction.

**Author's Note:**

> So this was mostly me working through the aftermath and what I think happens. One thing I found really interesting is some of Constantin last dialogue, especially before and after he sends the Guardian. I believe the game was implying he was going to force De Sardet to bind with him (thinking it was De Sardet's own good), but when De Sardet fights back, he stops and gives his dear Cousin the offer instead. I also believe the reason no action was taken against De Sardet is the people who found him lied through their teeth about what happened and since you had a Bishop, a Native Princess, a respected Bridge Scientist, and two well respected Captains, people bought it.


End file.
